1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to pipe plugging apparatuses, and more particularly to pipe plugging apparatuses which utilize a fluid inflatable and deflatable pump to stop water or other liquids from flowing through a pipe to facilitate repairs to the pipe.
2. Description of the Related Art
Various pipe plugging apparatuses have been proposed and implemented to facilitate the repair of pipes by stopping the flow of water or liquids through the pipe when repairs are in progress. Such apparatuses have been limited due to their complexity, inefficiencies, operational difficulties, and their use of air inflatable stopper elements.
Representative of such genre are U.S. Pat. No. 2,857,933 issued Oct. 28, 1958 to Lithun for a conduit plugging device; U.S. Pat. No. 3,841,355 issued Oct. 15, 1974 to Laner for a pipe plugging tool; U.S. Pat. No. 4,398,565 issued to Williamson Apr. 16, 1993 for a pipe plugging apparatus; U.S. Pat. No. 4,790,356 issued to Tash Dec. 13, 1988 for a drain plugging device; U.S. Pat. No. 4,612,961 issued Sep. 23, 1986 to Vetter for a tube sealing device; and, U.S. Pat. No. 4,660,603 issued Apr. 28, 1997 to Tash for a drain plug device. None of these proposed devices offer a satisfactory solution to the problems associated with repair of pipes and conduits. Such limitations undoubtedly have been a reason that such devices have not received widespread acceptance.
Accordingly, it is the primary object of this invention to provide a pipe plugging apparatus to facilitate the repairs of pipes and other conduits using a fluid inflatable and deflatable pump, intrusion tube, and balloon connected to the intrusion tube by a barbed element. The apparatus of the present invention is inexpensive to manufacture, easy to use, quickly deployable, and quickly and easily stored when not in use. The pipe plugging apparatus of the present invention may be used many times before replacement, does not require modification of tools, pipes, conduits, or the like for its deployment, and provides multiple positioning possibilities so that it can be used regardless of the type or size of pipe being plugged.
Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained by means of the instrumentality's and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.